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Keith Olbermann Casts A Wide Net In Job Search

Think Keith Olbermann has burned his last bridge in the television business? He doesn’t think so.

Seven months after he got dismissed by Current TV, the temperamental host is aggressively job-shopping, and he’s not being too picky about it.

In recent weeks, Olbermann has reached out to executives at a slew of different networks to communicate his desire for a new on-air role, according to people with knowledge of those conversations. Those include both cable outlets and at least one broadcast network.

He has expressed interest in taking over as anchor of existing shows and in starting a new show. Indeed, several of the networks he’s approached don’t have any news programming per se on their schedules. His frustration at not having a real platform during the height of election season has been evident.

Not that a news show is all he’ll consider. Olbermann has also told people he’d like to be involved in sports coverage. During his run hosting “Countdown” on MSNBC, he was, for a time, also an on-air commentator for NBC’s “Sunday Night Football,” although that arrangement ended in 2010.

You might suspect that Olbermann would be steering clear of NBC Universal in his job hunt, given his acrimonious history with that company, and you’d be right, at least as far as I’ve heard. Among the networks he’s approached are ones owned by Viacom and AMC Networks, two conglomerates he has yet to quarrel with.

It’s too bad there’s so much scorched earth he must avoid, because the most natural home for him right now might be FX, which has lately been experimenting with liberally-inflected comedy shows hosted by Russell Brand and W. Kamau Bell. But while FX may not toe the political line set by its owner, Rupert Murdoch, the News Corp. chairman has flat-out said he wouldn’t hire Olbermann again after firing him from Fox Sports in the 1990s.

Emails and messages to Olbermann’s agent, Nick Khan of CAA, did not receive a reply.

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From a business viewpoint, Keith Olbermann has proven to be a person who is attractive to the key demographic. This is a major selling point to advertisers. After all, any network that hires him is in business to make money. This is their bottom line. Mr.Olbermann’s Twitter Timeline is filled daily with requests/pleas for him to return to the airwaves. This is not a recent phenomenom;this has been going on for months. An example of what Keith Olbermann has done to enhance TV was his Thurber Fridays readings,done in memory of his late Father. Shortly after he started, requests for Thurber anthologies shot up;this lead to reprints and more money for the publishers,distributors,sellers. There is an educated,financially solvent audience begging for intelligent television like Keith Olbermann represents. He has never shied away from speaking out,speaking up or challenging his audience. But that is what makes him unique. Keith Olbermann will be a valuable asset, by bringing in viewers and advertising revenue, to whichever network hires him. The sooner the better – his presence is greatly missed.

The truth is that nobody wants to hire Mr. Olbermann because he’s undependable (ask CurrentTV how many times he was late or just didn’t show up for work), he publicly humiliates co-workers (yes, even on air!), he places blame on everybody but himself, he’s spoiled (demands a limo), he’s a whiner (he blows up, and I mean BLOWS UP, if his limo driver looks at him . . . no kidding!), he’s a liar (no, he did NOT graduate from Cornell!), he’s a narcissist of the first order.

Oh, where do we begin… Undependable? Doing a live show five nights a week under the circumstances he did at Current is a testament to dependability and loyalty – to his staff and to his viewers. I gather you did not watch Countdown. You would also know that he worked holidays to air live shows. He even promoted the show on his Twitter account, did several interviews to publicize the show (and Current). He paid for staff bonuses out of his pocket. The limo story is bogus. He took a car service (which is standard for most on-air talent in the industry:insurance reasons). Car. Not a limo. And he tips his drivers. It is no secret he uses the subway for most of his daily travels. As for Cornell – did you see the talk he gave there last year? It is on Youtube. I don’t think the entire Cornell University system would be involved in a conspiracy to “cover up” Mr. Olbermann’s academic record for any reason. They welcomed him as a returning alumnus. Narcissist-? Again, to do a live show five nights a week, one needs confidence. If you aren’t sure of yourself and your belief system, then you will come across as phony, or as nothing more than a money whore. How you present yourself to the public is crucial. There is only one chance to make a first impression. If viewers aren’t interested, they will go elsewhere. People sense when someone is the real deal or not. I must ask: Why do you care if Mr. Olbermann returns to TV or not? Are you afraid? Is your belief system that fragile? If you don’t like it, turn elsewhere. Many of us enjoy a journalist/commentator who doesn’t spoon feed us pablum. Respecting the viewers’ intelligence is Keith Olbermann’s hallmark.

Ask current tv …how they did not pay their bills ? Ask Al Gore how he uses people ( the late Frank Zappa if alive would tell a heapfull ) Ask Al Gore how he promised Keith over and over again to update his studio , several times, during broadcast’s the lights went out. Ask Al Gore about his made up story on the so called limo controversy …..they hadn’t paid the bill in months…….When Keith went to work for Gore I knew it would end in promises broken …I have hated Al Gore since he made Frank Zappa by supena testify before congress even though Zappa was in the throes of cancer, you fell fopr the BS that al gore dishes out ….you are just a lemming for gore…

PART of what Michael says he learned from the lovley and credible Ann COulter who also graduated from Cornell. She’s the one who says he didn’t because she doesn’t respect the program he earned his degree in. MICHAEL–this woman lies whenever she opens her mouth.